Sia - 'The Greatest' (ft. Kendrick Lamar)

Sia may just be the undisputed ruler of the pop world. Her last album This Is Acting literally consists almost exclusively of songs she wrote for other artists including Rihanna and Adele. Now, she has a brand new track - 'The Greatest' - with Kendrick Lamar on it. That's just a recipe for success.

The song begins just as any Sia song does - with a keyboard synth intro. The verses consists of that intro repeating itself on top of a minimal pop beat as Sia sings about running from a hard situation: "Uh-oh, running out of breath... / Uh-oh, running now, I close my eyes... And uh-oh, I see another mountain to climb... Uh-oh, I need another love, be mine." The song feels like the narrator is running from the hardships of life and as they hit one after one, she tells herself that she can keep going with the simple statement, "I got stamina." The pre-chorus has a more blatant - but uplifting all the same - cry, "Don't give up, I won't give up / Don't give up," before the chorus explodes in a burst of pride and hope: "I'm free to be the greatest, I'm alive / I'm free to be the greatest here tonight, the greatest / The greatest, the greatest alive."

While not included in the music video version (presumably the single version), Kendrick Lamar's guest verse serves less as trying to act as a motivator to the self, but more like motivation coming from a fatherly, or even godly figure. He claims that he is "the wisdom of the fallen - I'm the youth," implying that his words resonate with anyone, the old and the young. His verse is a reassuring pat on the back that may be what the narrator needs to carry on. Kendrick ends his verse by saying it's okay to fail, and you will be able to come back and get back up again: "Letdowns will get you, and the critics will test you / But the strong will survive, another scar may bless you."

The music video is in a typical Sia flavor, her iconic teenage dancer Maddie Ziegler performing an interpretive dance throughout a beaten down house. As she jumps from room to room, she is met by groups of teenagers and kids who dance with her, their faces all painted grey as if to say their life has been drained away, while Maddie's face has rainbow paint on it (perhaps a call to the LGBT community) and she is full of life, and brings that life to the others by dancing with them. As the song ends and the video goes to a droning noise, all of the kids fall to the ground in a pile as if their life was drained as the music stopped. Maddie wakes up and looking defeated and the video ends with her crying.

The message of the song seems to be in response to the mass shooting in Orlando, Florida earlier this summer. The hashtag that has been paired with the song and video, #weareyourchildren, now has meaning. Regardless of sexuality or beliefs, today's generation has the freedom to be gay or Muslim or whatever they want to be. We are your children, so why do you hate us? The message is one to be held close not only for strength through life, but for strength in your personality and beliefs.

Sia is a prolific artist, but her messages often serve more as motivation than the almost political statement served in 'The Greatest'. It's by no means bad - it's great to see Sia express her emotions through this song. 'The Greatest' hits a lot of areas and will resonate with a lot of people. Leave it to Sia to make real music in a world of fake messages in pop.

Rating: 83 / 100

Eluvium - False Readings On

Ambience is a beautiful thing. It is often said that nature's noise is the Earth's music, and that's very true. Ambient music is something thought-provoking, often times in emotional ways. It's simplistic, yet in all of its sonic soundscapes it invokes something within its listener.

Eluvium's newest record False Readings On is a masterful collection of drone and ambience. It's not complex but it says all that it needs to be creating beautiful imagery in its minimalism. The album shows his mastery of noise and his ability to create brilliance out of almost nothing.

People who don't like ambience music either don't understand its capabilities, or simply are finding the wrong examples of it. False Readings On shows the brilliance that ambient and drone music can do. It gets off to a peaceful beginning with 'Strangeworks' before diving into 'Fugue State', a slow-moving, churning track that reminds me of the innerworkings of a machine. It has that somber, black and white factory vibe within it that puts you in a cold, foggy winter's day. 

Some tracks aren't so much setting as they are putting you into a certain state. 'Movie Night Revisited' is a calming and nostalgic track - it seems to try and put you into the place where you can relive a close memory. It's followed by 'Beyond The Moon For Someone In Reverse', which then sets you into the scene of a foggy day at sea - a perfect place to reflect quietly to yourself. Nothing's around you, no one near you. It's just you and your thoughts in the middle of an endless beyond. 

The album's ending is where it feels closest to heart. 'Rorschach Pavan' feels slightly more positive than much of the rest of the record, with rich synths and layered punches of sweet noises build into a beautiful, warm texture. 'Individuation' follows up as one of the most sweet tracks on the record. It's simply just piano playing in the rain. It's a simple song, no tricks or strings attached to it. Its brilliance comes in that bittersweet feeling that comes with the rain and the innocence of the piano. Midway through the track, quiet footsteps can be heard as faraway brass accentuates the track. The album ends on 'Posturing Through Metaphysical Collapse', a song that ends the album with a sort of peaceful chaos. It begins in an operatic way, and eventually starts breaking down into a scathing white noise, as if it was collapsing in on itself. Then finally, when the song has finishing imploding within itself, it ends as calmly as it began, and the album is over. 

Eluvium's on his eighth album now, and yet his quality hasn't faltered a bit. False Readings On isn't a masterpiece, but it's a powerful record and will hit you. Each song isn't a wallowing wall of noise, but rather simplistic concoctions of emotion and scenery. It's proof that drone music isn't just noise - it's art.

Favorite Tracks: Individuation, Rorschach Pavan, Movie Night Revisited

Least Favorite Tracks: Drowning Tone, Washer Logistics

Rating: 70 / 100

Opeth - 'Will O The Wisp'

When Opeth has an album on the way, the metal world can't help but to stop and stare. Sorceress is out at the end of the month and promises to be the band's heaviest effort since 2008's Watershed. The title track 'Sorceress' seemed to combine the jazz flavors of 2014's Pale Communion with the band's heavier and experimental moments. The next single 'Will O The Wisp' shows the album is much more diverse than what you may expect.

'Will O The Wisp' is an acoustic track inspired by Jethro Tull's 'Dun Ringill', as frontman Mikael Akerfeldt told Team Rock. Speaking of the song's composition itself, he claimed: "I wanted to do a song with my capo really high, so it's up on the fifth fret. It makes the guitar sound really glittery. I just wanted to go for a simple, catchy vocal melody. It has a slightly positive vibe to it, but the lyrics are really, really dark. It's a beautiful song, I think. I'm really happy with that one."

The song does live up to Akerfeldt's description. It's acoustic instrumentation is bright and warm with an almost baroque vibe to it. The lyrics are upbeat yet hold a dark message to them: the pre-chorus and chorus regally chant, "You're stuck to the failures of your life / Marred with the sorrows of your strife / And time it waits for no one / It heals them when you die / And soon you are forgotten / A whisper within a sigh." The song progresses, eventually gaining a beat and closes our with an electrifying blues solo. The solo feels oddly mature - it's not very metal or wild in any way, it's just an expressive, beautiful guitar solo that feels right at place among the end of the track and acoustic guitars.

Opeth are masters of their craft. Whether it be the demanding jazz metal of 'Sorceress' or the stark acoustic beauty of 'Will O The Wisp', they can handle anything they tackle. Sorceress is bound to be an incredible album and definitely a standout in their discography. Now, we play the waiting game.

Rating: 90 / 100

clipping. - Splendor & Misery

Concept albums are great in theory, and often times prove to be phenomenal in execution. When an album has a narrative or an overarching story or meaning, it's so easy to get invested in them and engrossed in its message as if you were reading a novel. The best examples in recent times are Dream Theater's The Astonishing, a dystopian tale of love and war, and Muse's Drones, a commentary on the increasingly heartless ways of drone warfare. Sure, we don't have any legendary concept albums like Pink Floyd's The Wall knocking at our doorbells every year, but there are still definitely standouts that show up.

Of course, on the other side of things, there will be flops; and trust me, there are few things worse than a failed concept album. Unfortunately, that's what experimental hip-hop clipping. has achieved with their newest record, Splendor & Misery. 

It went for something interesting, and it deserves at least that much credit. It's story follows the sole survivor of a slave rebellion that's traveling through space on his Interstellar cargo ship. In his thoughts of loneliness (besides the ship's computer that has fallen in love with him), he discovers music in the ambience of the ship's creaks and shudders. Unlike the classic representations of anthropocentric insignificance in the face of an endless space, the main character finds comfort in knowing there's an infinite realm of possibility ahead of him, without the pressures of mankind bearing down on him.

While the story may seem fresh, the music that tells it really isn't. In an album of fifteen tracks, it's split almost half and half - eight "proper" tracks and seven interludes. The interludes add up to pretty much nothing more than unneeded ambience. The intro track 'Long Way Around (Intro)' hypes up the record nicely, segues into a confusingly fast verse (not in the line of Eminem, but more in the line of someone reading an instructions manual really fast) that is all of 'The Breach' before the first real track begins, and it's really underwhelming. 'All Black' sounds like somewhat of a mission objective being explained, and at six-minutes long, it just drones on and on. 

There are some good moments on the record, but most are ultimately ruined by something in the end. Take 'Break The Glass' for example, it's a pretty solid track with a haunting instrumental (sounds like that's the engine room of the ship) and distorted verses that build up into an almost industrial rap track. Of course, they had to end it with an ear piercing screeching that is pretty painful to listen to, but at least the meat of the song is good. There are some great gospel moments on the record too, but they're used as individual tracks, and I have absolutely no idea how they fit into the album. 'Long Way Away' and 'Story' are the tracks that consist of these. 'Long Way Away' eventually distorts into white noise while 'Story' follows the piercing noise at the end of 'Break The Glass'.

The only track on the album that really doesn't have a problem surrounding it is 'A Better Place'. It's the album's closure and it feels like an appropriate ending to the narrative and the record. It's upbeat with its proud organs and vocals, resonating hope and an challenging disposition to the frontier ahead of the escaped slave. It's a shortlived victory, though, since the album ends right as it gets off onto a good footing.

Perhaps a concept album just wasn't the right move for clipping. It's interesting to see that the group that usually raps about monotonous stories of living in the hood can branch out into this weird, afrofuturistic story about escaping the world. Granted, the music doesn't really support the effort put that narrative. No tracks really do well as a standalone item, and few of them actually do well in the context of things. But hey, they tried, right? Can't fault them there.

Favorite Tracks: A Better Place, Break The Glass, Long Way Home

Least Favorite Tracks: EVERY Interlude.

Rating: 30 / 100

Skylar Grey - 'Come Up For Air'

Skylar Grey is like the silent mastermind behind many of pop's biggest hits. It's always a welcome treat, as a result, when she uses her expertise for her own projects. Her latest album Natural Causes is due out on September 23, and she's shared the next single from it, 'Come Up For Air'.

Skylar Grey always has a certain swagger in her music. 'Come Up For Air' has all of that channeled through the powerful beat with a phenomenal snare sound. The song is produced by none other than Eminem, with whom she has worked with in the past, so it's only appropriate that the beat is produced to perfection. Her silky vocals sweetly flow in a longing way - according to Grey, this track is a break-up song in which the narrator is still in love, so much so that they will wait forever for the other half to return, even until death. The instrumental is minimal, the drum beat being the primary element. The song also has a low bass synth and reverberating keys that provide for a dreamy atmosphere. Background guitar also adds some character to the end of the track.

Skylar Grey best attribute is her songwriting ability, and while this song may not be the most subtle, it's still heavy hitting. The calmness of the vocals are heartbreaking in of itself, as if she really does have the patience to wait an eternity for her partner to return. It's particularly powerful in the bridge, in which she sings, "And even if this really is the end / I'm sure I'll be alone until I'm dead / Cause no one else will ever quite compare / To them it wouldn't be fair... If you're my Jack then I'm your Rose / And I promise I'll never ever let go," all the while she retains the same patient and calm vocal style, and that's really dark and just plain sad.

'Come Up For Air' is a pretty and beautiful song; the only thing it's missing is an emotional peak or climax - a release. It ends feeling just as restrained emotionally as the beginning, but it's darkness lies in that fact, and that's the character of the track. Skylar Grey seems to be taking a less upfront approach to Natural Causes and a more natural approach. This song is a quiet one, but it's message is all the same, if not stronger than if it was more upfront. Her album has a lot of potential, but the direction isn't clear just yet. The wait's only another few weeks, though. That mystery will be solved soon enough.

Rating: 85 / 100 

Cymbals Eat Guitars - Pretty Years

Cymbals Eat Guitars are not ones to typically settle for the standard. They're often caught in a quest to become part of a dichotomy of originality amongst the indie rock scene. Their blend of showgaze with indie elements has always made them a strong force.

Their last record was 2014's LOSE, a critically acclaimed record for the band. Often hailed as one of their best, it came with hardships. Those challenges served as an inspiration for their new record, Pretty Years. Vocalist and guitarist Joseph D'Agostino explained: "In a dark moment on tour for LOSE, I said something to [bassist Matt Whipple] about losing my pretty years quickly because of touring, how the lifestyle ages you." He continued, "Months later when we were writing for the record, he came to me with the lyrics for that chorus and I wrote the song around them." These sentiments of a hard time on the road are what gave birth to the track '4th Of July, Philadelphia (Sandy)'.

Pretty Years is very much an of-this-moment record. It seems to capture the present in order to let go of the demons of the past. Closure track 'Shrine' is the climax to message, where D'Agostino chants of running away from the pressures of reality in order to come to terms with his past. The sentiment of this album being a very present-oriented one also became clear in the studio; discussing the recording of the album, D'Agostino claimed, "With this record... I think we nailed it this time. First or second takes of everything, real hunger in the performances. Just something to prove," the nature of the record becoming clear from the start, not just by meaning but spiritually for the band.

It's unique qualities become most clear in the track 'Wish', which is dominated by screeching saxophones, harmonizing in the most tortured of ways, seemingly not by intention. The powerful build leads to a squeaky ending but it's hard to escape the demanding brass that carries the track through. 'Dancing Days' also provides something new, and sitting at the center of the album, definitely becomes its core. It gets off with a slow start with splashy keys before exploding in the chorus with massive drum fills delivered by Andy Dole. The song is a cumulation of excellence from the band, as the song bursts into its emotional conclusion with D'Agostino yelling "Goodbye to my pretty years."

As personal as it sounds, it does leave something to desire after the end. Previous efforts from the band felt fulfilled. This album seems to go through moments of shine but at the end, it's only isolated moments you can remember that bring the album together. While explosive and definitely a jam, for example, the punk rock attitude of 'Beam' feels like less of a part of the record as it does a filler to provide some energy mid-way in. It's especially at the ending of the record before it's conclusion that the album seems to lose momentum, and that starts with 'Beam'. 'Mallwalking' is a slow mover, almost dramatic. It has a cool guitar going on in it but it's meaning seems lost in that disposition. It's a bit awkward coming out of 'Beam', but the lyrics seem to at least attempt to bring it back into the course of the record. 'Well' is also a good track, but feels simply out of place. Outside of the album's meaning, it's still one of the standout tracks with a poppy start that makes way for a big ending and fantastic buildup.

Cymbals Eat Guitars' approach to Pretty Years was spontaneous, and more of a release of emotions than a busywork record. It's personal for the band, for sure, and that comes off in a lot of tracks. It seems to lose sight of that at times, though, and becomes nothing more than a throwing out of emotions in an aimless fashion. It may not be as cohesive as other records, but it feels like the album the band needed.

Favorite Tracks: Dancing Days, Wish, Well

Least Favorite Track: Beam

Rating: 71

Angel Olsen - My Woman

There's somewhat of an "indie girl syndrome" going around music lately - all of these indie rock bands popping up led by a woman have the same exact voice. Angel Olsen gives us a refresher from that scratchy, tired vocal style. Her third record My Woman is both a solid indie record with originality and a compliment to her career.

Fans of Olsen may go into this record expecting someone along the lines of the crunchy production style of her sophomore effort, Burn Your Fire For No Witness. This album takes into account something that was brewing since the start of her career. Under the thick production of her last two records was a clean side of her grunge and pop rock flair. The grit of her music is mostly gone and replaced with a new sense of writing and artistry.

My Woman is a songwriter's album at its core, the vocals and messages being backed by other instruments not out of necessity, but rather for accentuation. The album is separated into two halves: a pop rock half with more radio-friendly numbers, and a back half with more personal and grabbing tracks. The first track is 'Intern', a sweet track backed by synths that's a lot shorter than you'd wish it'd be. It's followed by the lo-fi and nostalgic 'Never Be Mine'. The guitar progresses from being a light backing number to the driving backbone of the song in an awesome buildup from beginning to end. Another highlight of this half of the record is the Nirvana-esque 'Give It Up' - I can't help but feel like the song should start with "I'm so happy, because today I found my friends" rather than the message of hate sent to past loves.

The second half of the record isn't as upfront as the first half is. It takes a step back from the ballad tracks and instead focusses on songwriting and reflection. It's start is marked by 'Heart Shaped Face' which is almost like a twangy slow dance. This song really starts the point where we see Olsen broaden her vocal variety, of which there is a lot of on this record. Her approach is very folky on this track, while in 'Those Were The Days', for example, her vocals are very jazzy. The album ends with the somber 'Pops' - it's the most stripped down track on the record and is the appropriate amount of reflection to end the record with. It's sad about the loss of a relationship and it's one of the most relatable tracks on the record. It's hard to not feel a familiar sadness listening to this track.

The true gem of the record, though, is 'Sister'. It is one of two tracks (the other being 'Woman') that clocks in at over seven minutes, and it's really a journey. The song goes through what Angel Olsen would tell her sister (if she had one - Olsen was adopted at the age of three) as she grew up. Olsen describes how this image of a sister helped shape her own life and how there was always a light at the end of the tunnel when she wasn't sure there was. The track has the build of a Fleetwood Mac track, folky and bluesy guitar et al, as it builds up to a more driven track with punchy piano and a truly electrifying guitar solo with Olsen belting in the background to bring the song to an epic and emotional climax.

There's little to complain about with Olsen's new record. The only sad part is that the first half of the record seems weak compared to the emotions of the second half. My Woman is a musical accumulation of who Angel Olsen is. This album is her soul and her spirit. The album is almost like a life lesson, or, for Olsen, a reflection on who she's become and how she got here. It's beautiful and provides for a very revealing experience. My Woman isn't just one woman; it's the experiences that everyone goes through, and delivers one message: you are a product of yourself.

Favorite Tracks: Sister, Pops, Never Be Mine

Least Favorite Track: Shut Up Kiss Me

Rating: 85 / 100

A Day To Remember - Bad Vibrations

The pressure is on for A Day To Remember with the sixth album into their career. They've met a lot of positivity as well as some mixed-reviews throughout the years, and it seems like everything has led up to their newest record, Bad Vibrations. Good on them, though, as it does not disappoint.

First and foremost, this album has some banging riffs. The first track, the eponymous 'Bad Vibrations', starts off a bit too edgy with some pretty wretched screaming, but makes up for it later on with blistering guitars and a belligerent ending. The main problem in this track is the mastering; it feels like it could have just a little more punch to it. The problem resolves itself in the next track 'Paranoia', the verses of which harken to Nine Inch Nails' 'March Of The Pigs'. The lead into the chorus seems to explode quickly then immediately returning to the appropriate mixing - I'm not sure if this is a mixing problem or a artistic choice, but it doesn't resonate right. Luckily, the song has enough punch to it to carry it through. The ending of 'Exposed' is massive and unpredictable - it explodes out of nowhere and takes the track from being an okay one to a huge one. The same is true in the following track 'Bullfight' - cool verses followed by an explosive ending. 'Reassemble' is big in a different way, the atmospheric intro leading into evil sounding riffs that resolves into a sweet, retrospective acoustic ending.

The other half of the record is composed of ballads and songs not riff-oriented. The first of these tracks is 'Naivety', and it doesn't offer up anything too special. It sounds like a standard alternative rock ballad from the 2000s. The ending where Jeremy McKinnon sings, "What I hate about getting older / Where's my naivety," is a pretty weak and even annoying way of ending the song. 'Justified' suffers in almost the reverse way; instead of having one really bad part and the rest being standard song, it starts incredibly promising with a unique start not yet heard on the record and just becomes another standard song for the rest of its play time. If they had kept the mood of the beginning going throughout the song, it could've been a lot better. 'Same About You' is a rockier track without any big riffs, and instead highlights the melodies - the vocals on this track are phenomenal.

The last song on the record is the orchestral 'Forgive and Forget', the most sentimental and powerful track on the album. The first half of the track consists of McKinnon's clean and somber vocals, rolling drums, light guitar, and a beautiful orchestra. The song buildups, the second verse adding a more prominent guitar lead before the song bursts into a big dramatic ballad ending without sacrificing the momentum or the mood of the track. 

My main gripe with the record is that a lot of it sounds the same, or works in the same manner. They go for big explosive endings in the heavier tracks while they rely on the mood of the tracks in the softer ones to carry them through. The heavier tracks are awesome and fun, but they really don't hit much ground until they hit it big with their endings. The softer tracks all have that same vibe, as well (barring 'Forgive and Forget' - that one's perfect, and it becomes stale and repetitive after awhile. I'm thankful that they're all separated at least a little bit - most albums would bunch all of these similar sounding tracks together and that would make it all the more boring. There's also an immature or sometimes non-existent regard the band gives in some tracks; 'We Got This' (though the buildup and piano are nice) and 'Turn Off The Radio' are examples. The latter of the two has a silly sentiment on top of things, but the actual music gives it some credibility.

A Day To Remember may not be a perfect album for the band, but it's a solid one all the same. It has a lot of powerful tracks with big riffs as well as soaring melodies. However, on the same side, many tracks leave a lot left to be desired. It has its highs and lows, but Bad Vibrations has good intentions at its core. It needs variation is all. Hopefully the next album takes that into account.

Favorite Tracks: Forgive and Forget, Exposed, Same About You

Least Favorite Tracks: Naivety, We Got This

Rating: 79

Memphis May Fire - 'Carry On'

Memphis May Fire are pretty much the good-boys of post-hardcore. That's not a bad thing, though. Their music always has a touch of God in it, often meaning very personal and uplifting messages come with it. With a new album on the horizon (details here), it's time to tap into what kind of sound the band will venture into next.

The first single from the next record (entitled This Light I Hold) is 'Carry On'. It's nothing special instrumentally, but it's a pretty rocking MMF track. It almost sounds like a lite-version of their previous effort's - 2014's Unconditional - 'No Ordinary Love', with the cleaner verses traded out with more brutal screaming but the downtuned riffs and blasting kick drums staying present. The chorus highlights vocalist Matty Mullins' aggressively clean vocals. The bridge takes a short reprieve, the instrumental fading to something quieter and Mullins delivering another motivational message. The song explodes once again into the final chorus with a more positive composure to it.

While everything may seem pristine on the surface, that really isn't the case with this track. It's not another version of Challenger (the main concern with their last record) but if this track indicates what the next album will hold, it's going to be a bit underwhelming. This track doesn't really have any meat to it. It's heavy to start with but it loses all of that momentum as it progresses. The third verse is almost cringey. The second verse is screamed and the lyrics are... passable, but then a quieter clean verse comes in with Mullins preaching about selling your values for profit: "Sell your soul for platinum / Sell the truth for gold / You can be the next big thing / If you turn your back on what you know." 

The problem is that this song lacks any subtlety. It's very much to the point, without even trying to find a way around directly saying what the song means. The bridge blatantly says: "I will never be like you / I'm not a puppet on a string / I'm not one of your machines / I'm not doing this for you / I'm not doing this for me / It's bigger than what you choose to see." It literally sounds like he's in an exasperated argument with someone. Not in the way of an internal struggle or a falling out, but as in a petty couple of teenagers having an argument. The writing of this track really is almost laughable.

This Light I Hold isn't off to a hot start. 'Carry On' is a pretty underwhelming track written without any sense of metaphor or subtlety. If you're going to speak of religious teachings, you can't simply state what you want to get across. Memphis May Fire was good at this before, and even when things weren't subtle there were other elements of songs that would make it powerful. 'Cary On' is just so painfully standard - you can see the potential it could have and end up disappointed when it doesn't go anywhere. Let's hold the album holds out and is miles better than what the single reveals.

Rating: 59 / 100

Dreamers - This Album Does Not Exist

Indie rock has seen massive growth the last few years, spawning some legendary bands. While this may only be their first record, indie rockers Dreamers have garnered a lot of attention lately. Their debut This Album Does Not Exist is out now and it's long overdue.

You won't be seeing a complete reinvention of the genre in this album, but you will find an album that solidifies itself as a statement in the genre. This Album Does Not Exist is a very fun-loving album, having a fresh continuity throughout it's playtime that doesn't falter at all. It starts with the banger 'DRUGS', the song that sets the momentum for the entire record. It's a fun rock track that shows the band's ability to vibe out and enjoy their music. It doesn't feel forced or tense, as if the expectations for the band are stacked against the them. It's free. While some bands may feel pressured on their first release, Dreamers bursts confidently into this new frontier.

This album is fun but also dark at times - 'DRUGS' has a fun composure but the lyrics are a bit dark; while it's mainly about having fun, it does have undertones of addiction in it. It's hard to pinpoint these moments, since the album is so upbeat. 'Painkiller' is the same in that way, the punchy track having undertones in its meaning. It's so fun sounding, though, that you won't really get that while jamming out to it.

The underlying messages mean almost nothing here, though; the positivity of the record makes it too enjoyable for you to have to concern yourself with them. 'Sweet Disaster' starts to move away from the pure rock sound and adds in some electronic elements - the great guitar line is and an underlying synth boosts the track a little further. The older track 'Wolves (You Got Me)', which could be found on the band's sole EP release, has sweet crooning vocals from vocalists Nick Wold and a high synth that soars above the guitar riffs.

It's only the start of the record that's truly special, sadly. The latter half of the record is just... average. By the time 'Cry Out For Me' comes around, it's at the point where you're telling yourself "well, okay. I've heard this already." It's not that any of the tracks are bad by any means, they're all still fun and enjoyable, it's just nothing new from what you've heard earlier on the record. You get the wildness of 'Shooting Shadows' and the Nirvana-esque intro of 'Come Down Slow' that support the record's fun until the end. The only low moment I'd say is 'Lucky Dog' - it still carries the vibe, but it sounds just a tad too pretentious.

Dreamers has a swagger to them you can't find anywhere else. This Album Does Not Exist may not break any barriers but it does solidify their career. It's a successful and fun album, their somber 80s rock vibes meeting a modern touch. Dreamers are off to a great start with their full length debut, and they'll have everyone excited for the next one.

Favorite Tracks: Painkiller, Sweet Disaster, Shooting Shadows

Least Favorite Track: Lucky Dog

Rating: 73 / 100